Dust- A Heroes of Olympus Fanfiction
by Cerise Amberwood
Summary: A year after Gaia was defeated, everyone thought that they could finally live a decently normal life, and lead on with their forgotten futures. They were wrong. Something dark is stirring underground, and a half written prophecy is spoken, The Earth Mother's dust awakens, inflicting pain upon the demigods, threatening the world. Can the seven manage to stop it? Or die trying...
1. Chapter 1

Dust

By: Cerise Amberwood

Disclaimer:

I do not own or have created the Percy Jackson or Heroes of Olympus series. These series, plot, and most of the characters were made and owned by Rick Riordan.

Praise the Rick Lord!

 _ **Hello! I'm the author of this fanfic, the name's Cerise.**_

 _ **SO, this is my first attempt at a fanfic, so please don't judge me too hard :3**_

 _ **I actually already wrote this once, and it never saved, so that sucked. But I'm determined to get this chapter finished so here we go again!**_

 _ **Hope you enjoy!**_

 ** _~ Cerise Amberwood_**

Note:

 _SO Dust is placed about a year or so after the war with Gaia. Demigods are finally settling down, and thinking of the future. Camp Halfblood is rebuilding, and with help from the Romans is now more fortified than ever!_

 _The beginning of this starts with Frank, and a startling discovery that all is not what it seems with the world. Gaia's... remnants? Are stirring, and a warning from Mars threatens that the end of the world is near._

 _Can the original Seven come together again, and find Leo, who is still missing, and fight one last battle? And will Romans and Greeks band together just like last time, or will fights break out again?_

 _Gaia has a chance to take over the world again, and the Seven have a chance to stop her, all in Dust, a Heroes of Olympus fanfiction, based on the real series created by Rick Riordan, Master of Everything Awesome._

 **Chapter 1: The Awakening**

 **Frank's POV:**

" Praetor Zhang!"

Frank Zhang was walking up Temple Hill, heading for Mars Ultor, when Mia, a centurion ran up to him, talking a mile a minute. " Praetor! Praetor!"

Frank sighed, " Calm down, I can hear you just fine."

Mia flushed bright red. " Oh, well yes, ahem. Praetor Reyna is already in the forest-"

" The forests? Past the Field of Mars?"

" Yeah, that's the one. There have been signs of several monster attacks in there. We have a wounded girl from the Fifth Cohort. She claims she saw a girl with a… goat leg, who burst into flames."

" So what you're saying is there's an empusai in the forest."

" Yes, Centurion Hazel Levesque and the two graceu- ahem, greek demigods await you."

Frank heard the beginning of her insult, and clenched his jaw subtly. " Tell them I'll be there in five. I have things to do."

Mia sighed and batted her eyelashes at him, resting a hand on his arm. " Whenever you're ready Praetor Zhang."

Frank stumbled away, mumbling something about Mars, blushing bright crimson. Mia giggled and strutted away, but not after she squeezed Frank's biceps and giggled some more.

Frank could feel her eyes on him as she turned around and walked away, turning back around to stare at him several times. Frank sighed and turned around, trying to ignore Mia's burning gaze, as he walked up to Mars Ultor.

Frank shuddered and rubbed his eyes. Ever since he had returned to Camp Jupiter as a Hero of Olympus, and had become Praetor of the Twelve Legion after Jason gave him emergency promotion during the battle at the House of Hades, girls kept on hitting on him, or flirting with him. I mean, sure, he had changed a little in appearance, okay, maybe a lot. But it wasn't that big a deal! ... For him at least.

He had recently turned sixteen and a half, and had grown out of his baby face. Due to all of his training and war games, he had grown kind of buff, and finally gotten tall enough so that he felt relatively normal in his own skin, better than he did on the Argo II.

Piper and Jason were visiting Camp Jupiter, along with Nico Di Angelo and Will Solace. Frank recalled a conversation he had earlier with Jason, which had made him feel extremely awkward. It was also what had brought him to Temple Hill.

They were walking through New Rome, two old friends taking a walk, and Jason had been commenting on Frank's appearance the entire time.

" Dude," He had said, disbelief shining in his eyes.

" Yeah?" Frank asked, tilting his head to one side in confusion.

" Dude, you got buff! What the heck Frank! As Leo would say, you're a walking chick magnet now." They both smiled and laughed even though Frank was extremely embarrassed.

" Nah, Jason. I just spend a lot of time training, I've been practicing my shapeshifting and archery. Besides, we all know you and Percy are the better looking ones."

Jason laughed, " Frank in all seriousness, I can understand your problem."

Frank turned around, wrinkling his brow in confusion. " What problem?"

Jason raised an eyebrow. " On the way here five girls have winked at you, three have written their names and cohorts on their arms and waved them at you, and about six groups of girls have all simultaneously sighed and whispered about you as you walked by."

Frank flushed bright red. " Pretty sure they were doing that for you too man, not just me."

Jason laughed, " Oh no, Frank. They had your name written on their arms, and I heard the names ' Frank' and ' Zhang'. Accept it dude, you're officially wanted."

The two passed a Venus dedicated altar, and Frank muttered a silent curse at the annoying, self absorbed goddess of love. Jason snickered and nudged him playfully, silently warning him to be careful. Frank rolled his eyes and smirked. He didn't mind his looks but he wished Venus would kinda, lay off on all the fawning girls. Jason interrupted his thoughts.

" The Venus Festival is coming up soon, in about two and a half weeks? I'm pretty sure all the girls will be asking you to go with them."

Frank was flustered, " But I'm with Hazel!"

" I don't think they don't care that you guys are dating, and so if you want to make them stop flirting with you, then you have to make it clear that you're with Hazel and you don't want to date anyone else."

Frank and Jason spent the rest of the walk mostly in silence, Frank still pondering about Jason's words. What could he do to make the girls go away? It's not like he could directly ask, that would be kind of mean... Frank sighed, slightly wishing he didn't have such a strong cinnamon side.

Jason was about to say something when Frank doubled over, grabbing his head in pain. He heard his father, Mars, for the first time in almost seven months, shouting in his head. Each word left a ripple of pain, but his words were muffled, as if he was underwater. Frank could only make out two words, Mars Ultor. His father was trying to tell him something, and obviously his altar/temple would be the place where he would have the most power to appear.

" Ow… Woah, something's wrong…" Frank gasped, trying to stop the migraine.

Jason grabbed Frank's arm, " Hey, what's wrong! Frank, hey can you hear me?"

" Yeah," Frank gasped, " Jason, go gather everyone, you, Piper, Nico, Will, Hazel, everyone. Meet me at the Mars Cabin, 'kay? I'll be ten minutes, I have to check something."

Before Jason could say or do anything, Frank transformed into an eagle and flew away to Mars Ultor, in search of what was wrong.

So here he was, climbing up to his Father's altar. Finally, after a few minutes of pondering and walking, he made his way to the place right in front of the altar.

Strangely enough, there was a man standing in the altar, dressed in a Canadian Special Forces uniform.

" Father?"

The man turned around, revealing himself as Mars, the Roman god of war, also Frank's father.

Strangely enough, Mars's eyes weren't their usual fireball red, they were deep brown, just like Frank's. He had golden ichor stained bandages wrapped around his arms, and more peeking out of his uniform. Frank had never seen his father looking so… defeated. He looked as if he had travelled through Tartarus and back, without his godly powers.

" Hey kid, bet you're wondering what's happened huh?" Mars spoke up, coughing after he spoke.

" Dad, what happened to you?" Frank was concerned, and a little more frightened than he'd like to admit.

Mars knelt over his altar, examining something in the ground. " There is something awakening, kid. Something dark. I've been taking all the weight I can, but I know even if I don't wan't to admit it, I can't hold on forever."

" What? What are you talking about?" Frank yelled the question, a tightness forming in his chest.

" It's attacking us Frank, both of us, me and that Graceus god, Ares or whatever. We've been taking most of the damage, trying to protect the others, but we're losing. I can feel it in me, slowly chipping away at me, and I've- we've been fighting it day and night but she keeps coming back stronger and stronger, every day. Every night. She can't be stopped."

" Who is she? Tell me!"

Mars replied slowly, seeming out of breath. " Earth… Mother's, remnants…"

" Earth Mother? Do you mean… No, we defeated her! We killed her!"

" Frank listen, all of us, Roman and… Greek, are both being affected. We may not last as long as we hope, so it's up to you, Frank, and your friends. You have to be prepared. There will be betrayals, and deaths. I wish this wasn't true but you are strong, you are my son and I know you can do thi-" He gasped, doubling over in a groan.

" Woah! Mars! What's wrong!?"

Mars stared up grimly at his son, wishing this wasn't happening now. He cared about his children more than he let on but this boy, this boy he loved with all of heart. He was proud of Frank and knew that he could make it through this. " I am so sorry son. This is going to hurt but you're strong. You are your mother's son. I know you can make your way through this. Remember what I said. Emily would be so proud of you, Fai."

Frank stared up at his father in surprise and worry. His father never got sentimental, and he definitely never called him by his real name before. Frank stared in horror as his father collapsed to his knees, golden ichor streaming out of his newly opened wounds. Something was definitely wrong. He couldn't do this now! The great prophecy had just ended, he was beginning things with Hazel, he was living his life! He thought hard, scrambling over Mars's words, trying to make sense of what was happening.

A wet, earthy smell hit him as Frank ran forward, grabbing his father's arm. The breeze picked up around him, swirling thousands of dead leaves around Frank and his father, leaving Frank cold and alert. His father's words bounced around his head.

 _This is going to hurt.  
_ _You are strong.  
_ _I am so sorry._

 _Emily would be proud..._

For a few seconds, Frank thought he would be okay. What a dumb thought.

Spoiler, he was wrong.

An earth shattering pain hit him and sent him flying, falling backwards and away from his father, who disappeared with a scream, surrounded by a ring of green fire.

Frank could barely see through the red clouding his vision. He felt something slash into him, hitting him over and over again. He turned around, catching glimpses of his opponent as they dodged and weaved through his attacks, avoiding them. Frank turned into a lion, roaring and slashing at the air with his sharp claws. An ungodly fast attack sent him spinning towards the ground. He turned back into human, feeling several bones break as he hit the ground.  
His opponent smashed into him, sending him flying into the side of Mars Ultor.

He heard a crack and realised his ribs were probably broken. Was that why it was so hard to breathe?

The ground started shaking, like an earthquake, rattling his bones. He closed his eyes, concentrating on his breathing. He needed to calm down to shape-shift. A cold hand rested on his shoulder and he looked up.

Two luminescent, green eyes loomed over him, blood red lips curling into a smile.

A lady stood over him, her black hair tumbling over her shoulders and onto her long, blood red dress, her grin startlingly cold. She looked startlingly familiar. " Frank Zhang, oh how the mighty have fallen."

Frank didn't know how long he was there, lying in front of Mars Ultor, trying to ignore the migraine flaring through his head. He grabbed his arms and could feel his blood running down them, slightly panicking at the thought that he could be seriously injured. The lady paced back and forth, vines creeping up her dress, curling around her arms. Whoever this lady was, she was definitely not a mortal. Or a demigod.  
No demigod could be this powerful.

Frank sank into semi-consciousness, trying not to pass out, desperately trying to look over at his father, who was surrounded by incredible green flames which reminded Frank too much of the vines that curled around his arms, jabbing his wounds and curling up to his face. They slithered up his cheeks, getting closer and closer to his eyes.

He was so tired and defeated, he barely registered an inky pool of shadows opening up next to him, and six people stumbling out of it, one of them immeadiately collapsing in another's arms.

Three people looked around, one of them screaming as they spotted him. They ran towards him, one of them opening several bags and satchels, hastily trying to help him. He could make out the form of two others, at his side, one of them talking to him, tears spilling out of their golden eyes. The first cut away the vines that crept up him, but they grew back almost immediately, twisting around his neck, sprouting thorns that scratched him. Two other people stood close by, but even with his eyes barely open Frank could tell that they looked horrified.

One of the three, the one with liquid gold eyes grabbed his hand, not letting go even when the vines crept up her hand.

The other, her hair black and tied back in a braid grabbed his arm, her obsidian eyes flaring as she placed her hands directly over his SPQR and Mars brand, and started sending energy into him. It warmed him to the core, sending the vines shooting back, retreating from his face and neck. Frank sighed, glad that the thorny plants were gone. The girl was definitely Reyna, using her powers as a daughter of the Roman Goddess Bellona, sharing her energy with him. He barely registered this fact, even though it did surprise him.  
His attention spun back to the golden eyed daughter of Pluto, who was looking into his eyes, still talking to him.

 _Reyna…. And Hazel._ One more, who was healing him. Probably _Will._

Out of the corner of his eyes he could still see the woman, her grin still cold and cruel. She was staring at him with her intimidating green eyes, radiating power like a goddess.

" Look… over there…" Frank mumbled, lifting a hand to point to the woman. She put a finger to her lips and grinned, sending another migraine to Frank that made him groan and twist in pain.

" Frank! Frank are you okay? Please be okay!" Hazel was sobbing, grabbing his hand while Reyna gave as much power as she could spare, using her powers. Frank rolled over staring directly at the woman, wishing for her to stop. More vines crept up her dress, curling around her arms. She smiled and laughed at him, gesturing to Mars Ultor.  
" How pathetic. Like Father, like Son."

Inside, Mars appeared, the fire turning transparent, like glass. Mars was mirroring Frank, covered in ichor instead of blood.

" My, my, how the mighty have fallen. You see, taking out the War God and a Praetor of Rome, both beacons of hope for this pathetic Camp. Jupiter never was one for brains," Her eye flashed black. " Neither was Mars."

" Frank," Mars gasped, struggling to speak. He turned towards the woman. " Stop this demon, take me! Leave my son out of this!" Mars roared, yelling at her. When she gave no reaction, Mars turned to Frank, speaking with obvious determination.

" Frank, remember this- Monster dust. Remember monster du-" He was cut of by the woman, who slammed a spear into the ground of Mars Ultor.

The Roman sign for war. She shimmered and shed her invisibility, making Frank gasp and stare at her. Led by his expression, Hazel turned and saw her.

" What the-" Reyna whirled around at the sacred temple, gasping as a spear slammed into the ground, flung by the woman who was hurting Frank. She screamed with joy, lifting up a hand, summoning vines that grabbed Frank and flung him away from Will and the others.

" Who are you!" Reyna demanded.

" Oh, poor, poor, Praetors, or should I say, Praetor. Soon there won't be a Son of Mars to lead this Camp."

Hazel screamed, pummeling the woman with rocks, eyes widening as the vines surrounding the woman shot up and grabbed every single jewel that hurtled towards her, flinging them back. Hazel grabbed her sword and deflected most of them, Reyna backing her up.

Two more figures joined the fight, one of them barely standing. The other joined Will as he rushed towards Frank. It was Piper, charmspeaking his pain away.

Frank felt the pain lessening in his mind. He could feel Will bandaging him.

Will noticed and snapped his fingers in front of his eyes. " Frank, hey! If you can hear me raise your hand."

Frank was too tired to hold up even a finger but he managed, channeling his strength. He could feel Mars fighting, giving him strength which he returned back to his father, both gaining energy and power until Frank was able to sit up, still covered in blood.

Without knowing, he started shape-shifting into different animals. The vines holding him broke and he sprung up, his shapeshifting out of control.  
A panda, then a tiger, then a dragon, all while his vision tinted red.

He could hear Will yelling at someone, most likely him as he charged towards the woman. He could hear her yell, " Do you know who I am? How dare you!"

Frank the dragon spread his smoky gray wings, breathing fire at her as he roared his response. Nobody else knew what he was saying, only that it grabbed the attention of the red dressed lady.

" Gaia, you are Gaia."

" Hmph. Very good. Guess you aren't as stupid as I thought, Son of Mars. Don't take after your father I see. Sadly enough you've wasted my energy today, and I think you've wasted your own too. Rest for now, Praetor. But I will be back, so until then, Fai Zhang. Just know that you and your petty little demigod friends cannot and will not hide. Camp Jupiter will be mine, and I have my own special plans for the camp that killed me. Well no," She laughed. " Not killed, delayed." She said the last word with all the loathe in the world. Frank glared at her, turning back to human, his strength failing him.  
" Don't think you've won this battle demigod. I will return, and I swear, you will be the one I kill first. Even before Jason Grace. Piper McLean. Leo Valdez. Annabeth Chase. Percy Jackson. Oh, and of course, Hazel Levesque, your sweet little girlfriend. I will murder you right in front of her. So beware Praetor. For you have made a dangerous enemy. 'Till we meet again. Very soon."

She spit the words out like sharp daggers, meant to kill him.

Finally, she exploded in a flurry of leaves, literally evaporating in the breeze. Frank could feel his friends behind him, all extremely scared of what they had just heard.

Frank barely heard someone speak up, before his vision dimmed and he tilted sideways. The vines curled around his arms tightened before disappearing, leaving him bloody and very confused at what the heck just happened. He could hear people yelling, and scrambling towards him as he slumped on his knees, then falling sideways, on his back.

As Frank hit the ground he looked towards Mars Ultor, and there stood his father, looking better but not completely healed. His bandages, which Frank didn't notice were gone, were replaced with new ones, and the golden ichor had stopped flowing from his wounds, They looked at each other and Mars stood up, nodding grimly, smirking at his son.  
" Good job Soldier. At ease. Go rest." He added after a pause. " Do not forget anything I said. I'm proud of you son."

Frank nodded and returned the smile, finally feeling at peace. He was filled with happiness that his father was proud of him, and with those words, finally drifted off to sleep, letting the pain take control of his mind, numbing his body as his mind went blank.

 ** _Whew! Ohmigosh! That is Chapter One done! That took a looooooonnggg time to write! I really hope you enjoyed the first chapter of Dust, and I hope you leave some reviews so that I can get, some, well, reviews and feedback I guess. I really do appreciate you spending time on this! _**

**_Signin out for now!  
~ Cerise _**

**_P.S. I might not update in a while since I got stuff going on and summer break is almost done! I hope I can get a couple of chapters out before school starts but please don't expect them to be too long :D_**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

The Song

Nico's POV:

Nico stood in one of the extra cabins in Camp Jupiter, a place for when other demigods, usually greek, or others like the Hunters of Artemis, or the Amazons, or in this case, where Nico Di Angelo and his amazingly annoying boyfriend Will Solace could stay.

He and all of his friends were banned from seeing, or in Reyna's words, ' annoying' Frank while he was recovering.

Nico flashed back to earlier moments of the day before Frank got injured, back to when Jason had run to him, Will, Hazel, and Piper. They were all eating lunch near the cohort cabins and in the midst of joking around when he ran up to them, speaking extremely fast. His urgent words still echoed in Nico's head.

" Hey guys, Frank and I were walking along Rome when his head started hurting and then he was all like, ' Hey, get the team, Mars Cabin, I'll be there in ten' and I was all like, ' Woah wait' but he was already gone so-"

He was interrupted by Hazel. " Wait, his head hurt? Is he okay?" Nico slung an arm around her reassuringly and looked at Jason, silently demanding an answer.

" I mean, I don't know, the last time I recall him looking like that was on the Argo II, he would randomly scrunch up his forehead and look like he was having headaches but don't ask me."

Reyna walked up to their table, her long black hair tied back in a braid, obsidian eyes narrow as she took in the worried look Hazel was wearing and the anxious one Jason wore.

" What's wrong." She demanded, and after Jason explained she frowned. " Well, I guess the smart thing to do would be to wait for Frank in the Mars Cabin… Good job getting those finished by the way."

She nodded at Jason, who smiled back.

As Pontifex Maximus, Jason had made it his job to make shrines and altars for all the gods, but he had also been inspired by the Greek's Camp and wanted to make cabins for not only cohorts but for the demigods' godly parents.

So the group headed off, waiting in front of the Mars Cabin.

It was a Camp rule that you had to have permission from a demigod that was a member of the cabin you wanted to enter.

It was thirty minutes later when Reyna and Nico started getting impatient and Jason and Hazel were getting worried.

" Hey, Jason he said he'd be here right?" Piper asked, looking around to see if she could spot Frank anywhere.

" Um, yeah about… _Twenty minutes ago_?" Reyna huffed, glaring at Jason. " Grace if this is a prank I swear. I've already sworn that I'd kill you last winter when you and Percy made a bolt of lightning strike on the ice I was ice-skating on."

Piper stared at her incredulously. " You _ice skate_?"

Reyna glared at her then smirked, flipping her hair in an overdramatic way. " There's a lot you don't know about me, McLean."

Nico snorted and laughed, causing Will to stare at him, dumbfounded.

" Well, well, well, Deathboy can laugh."

Nico instantly put on a mock frown. Will cracked up then started talking to Piper, who was looking at him with a smug, knowing face. Nico rolled his eyes and turned to Hazel, who was still looking extremely worried. Her big gold eyes were trained on the pathway to and from New Rome and Temple Hill. She looked so nervous and kept checking the clock hanging on the wall of the cabin, obviously thinking of her boyfriend.

" Hey, Haze, it's fine, Frank probably just stopped to help a kitten out of a tree or something. He'll come eventually."

Hazel smiled and thanked him, but kept looking at the paths.

Ten minutes later Zhang still hadn't shown up.

" Hey, guys?" Reyna asked, staring in concern at the time. " Where do you think Frank is?"

" It's not like him to keep people waiting," Jason said, knowing that Frank was too much of a cinnamon roll to prank or hurt anyone on purpose.

Hazel stood up and started walking.

" Woah! Haze wait up! Where are you going?" Nico yelled, running up to her as the others followed.

Hazel ignored him and faced away from him, trying to hide the tear that snaked it's way down her cheek.

" Hey! Haze… It's okay, Frank is okay."

" You don't know that." She whispered, voice cracking as she strode purposely down the path to New Rome. Nico knew that after she had lost Frank in the House of Hades, she was heartbroken, and she had told him that she would never let that happen ever again. Clearly, the couple meant a lot to each other.

" Um… Hazel." She glanced back. Jason was looking up at Temple Hill. " When Frank said that he had things to take care of he transformed into an eagle and flew in the direction of Temple Hill, so that might be our best shot if we want to find h-"

Will gasped in shock. " Guys something's wrong. Look!" He yelled, pointing at Temple Hill. Hazel brought her hand up to her mouth and Piper stared in horror.

They could see Mars Ultor in the distance. Even from far away, they could all see that the grass around it was stained red, and the air around it had turned smoky and green. Nico could see a figure slumped against the side of Mars's Altar, which had faint spider web cracks all over it.

Nico looked at the figure a little closer and with a panicked look at his friends realized that it was a tall person, a boy, with short black hair. Frank.

Hazel stifled a scream as she realized it too, and clung to Nico, pleading at him with her eyes to help him.

Before Jason could fly up to the hill, and without a second thought, Nico grabbed all of his friends and shadow traveled them to Mars Ultor, ignoring Will's shout.

As soon as they appeared on the hill, an excruciating exhaustion hit him, leaving him gasping for breath. Jason caught him as he fell over, and Piper helped him lean against a rock. Will grabbed his shoulder but Nico mumbled something about him needing to go and help Frank.

Jason and Piper tried to help him stay put, but he twisted around when he heard Hazel scream. Nico struggled to stand, things happening too fast for him to comprehend.

Jason and Piper made sure he was okay before running towards someone, who Nico thought was probably Frank. _Is it that bad…_ He winced and pulled himself up, fighting the need for sleep.

He stumbled towards them, gasping as a woman appeared, pale skinned and in a blood red dress, her long hair curled and dark as soil.

He couldn't remember a lot but he did remember trying to fight her, along with Jason, Reyna, and Hazel. Why he did was a complete mystery to him. Even now it was hard to describe. A sense of dread had settled over him, leaving him sure that this woman was an enemy. She very well could have been a goddess in disguise, but that didn't matter. Nico remembered flashes of what happened, swinging at the lady with his stygian iron sword, raising a couple of skeletons with the last of his strength.

He had a terrible feeling that he knew who the lady was, but his idea was impossible. He didn't want to think about it.

Without thinking, he started to sing softly. It was an Italian lullaby his mother used to sing to him and Bianca.

Nico didn't like to admit it but he actually had a pretty good voice. Nobody but Bianca had ever heard him sing, and he was determined to keep it that way. Attention was too embarrassing for a Son of Hades. He had enough of it at Camp Halfblood.

He had grown taller over the months, and after countless nights sparring with campers had gotten in shape. He was still shorter than Will, which annoyed him, but he loved stealing Will's too big for him hoodies and falling asleep under Thalia's tree with the stars shining over him. He would work secretly on singing sometimes, which was the very thing that let Peleus allow him to get close to the tree and fleece. He would soothe the dragon with songs of sorrow, and happiness, and belonging.

He thought about his friends while he sang, unaware of the person standing in the doorway.

Jason, who had acted as if Nico was his little brother, always protecting him, even when he didn't need it. He was also the one who supported Will and Nico being together the most.

Piper, who, while always being sassy, cared deeply about him. She also teased him a lot about Will, always sending looks or smirks his way whenever Will did something cute.

Frank, who even after the numerous death threats that Nico had sent him if he ever hurt Hazel, which he would never do, was still always so nice to him. He was the one who had given him secret archery lessons so that he could beat Will for once at the archery range. Frank was a sweet guy, definitely a great match for Hazel.

Hazel, she was still beautiful, yet so innocent. She was extremely powerful, even if she didn't look like it. She was strong, inside and out, and was the first to reach out to him in the Underworld, she was truly special.

Annabeth… Even after all Nico had done, she still treated him like a brother, and still cared for him greatly. She was beautiful and smart, but still an amazing person. She was definitely the right person for him.

No wonder Percy loved her. Percy. In truth, Nico was over him and was glad that he had found the right person. Percy still made his heart flutter a little, but it wasn't the same as before. Now it was different, like thinking someone was cute but knowing you wouldn't be with them since you're already in love.

Then there was Leo. Leo Valdez.

A subtle creak sent him whirling around, mortified to see a Will Solace, mouth open and staring in awe at his boyfriend.

The two fifteen-year-olds stared at each other, both of them silent.

" … Wow" Will said, his periwinkle blue eyes still wide open, a half smirk planted on his face. " Ow!"

Nico had slapped him, leaving a forming, bright red mark in the vague shape of a hand.

" What was that for!" Will asked, rubbing his cheek.

" Why were you listening!" Nico was blushing now, crimson shading his cheeks. Will was still holding his face, and the mark had gone from pale pink to bright red. " Sorry. Wait no, I'm not sorry."

" Geez, sorry!" Will looked up at him with a growing smile. " You have a beautiful voice Neeks."

Nico turned around, not wanting Will to see the tear running down his cheek. The last person who had said that to him was Bianca when he had sung to her in the Underworld. Before she had chosen to be reborn.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up, staring into those clear blue eyes. Will put an arm around him, which under normal conditions would annoy him, but this time he was grateful for it. He leaned into Will, not fighting when he was pulled into a hug. Will's orange hoodie was warm, well, Will himself was always warm. Everything about him was perfect, and Nico was the exact opposite. But sometimes, in moments like this, when he was with Will, it was as if he shared some of Will's sunlight. Bianca would have loved him.

He pulled away furiously rubbing the tear away from his eye, turning away as he grabbed his aviator jacket. " I'm going for a walk." He announced, trying to blink the memories of his sister away.

He was stopped when Will slipped his hand into Nico's. " Well then Deathboy, where to?" Nico looked up at his boyfriend, cracking a small smile. The two boys walked out the cabin, feeling absolutely perfect.


	3. Chapter 3

_Hi Guys! Cerise, back at it again! I wasn't actually going to write more of Dust this week because I'm swamped with work at school and I'm currently writing another story (It's a Glee fanfic) so I've been busy, but I'm glad I did because I love HoO!_

 _Okay, I'm off- See you guys later!_

 _~Cerise_

Chapter 3: The Dream

Hazel couldn't sit around thinking while Frank was in the infirmary, she had to do something.

Her boyfriend was recovering, thank the gods, most of his injuries had miraculously healed on Temple Hill, but he still had a huge wound stretching across his chest. Will had informed her that it would leave a scar. She had struggled not to panic, telling herself that he would be okay.

When she had gone to see him, she had to maneuver around flowers and balloons, along with several cards with phone numbers on them. With a glare, she accidentally summoned several small diamonds. With a bit of concentration, she sunk them back into the ground.

She had sat next to Frank, trying to keep calm. He looked so peaceful when he was sleeping. As if all of the problems and responsibilities he had to carry on his shoulders just vanished, and was replaced with all the calm in the world.

By the time she had left, the sky was darkening, and the stars had begun to twinkle like sapphires. She saw three people standing a few feet away, staring up at the crescent moon. A wolf howled in the distance, but other than that, everything was silent. She walked back to her cohort's cabin, which was empty. Ever since Jason had finished the cabins dedicated to the gods, demigods had been spending their nights in either the cabins or their cohort houses. Tonight everyone seemed to have gone to their cabins.

She walked past her bed and was so tired she didn't realize where she was going. She stumbled over to a section of the cabin with a red poster board, complete with pictures of all her friends. Without realizing where she was, Hazel ended up sitting down on her boyfriend's bed. She lay on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. A picture of her and Frank sat on the bedside table, along with a lamp and a slim sketchbook-like notebook. Unable to sleep now that she was lying down, she sat up, clicking the lamp on.

She stared at the photo, which she recognized from the day where she and Frank had spent a day in Camp Halfblood. She was wearing a white and black jacket with a hood that looked like a panda, and Frank had been teasing her earlier by turning into a giant panda.

In the picture, they were riding a black and white colored pegasus called Oreo. ( Many more jokes about pandas had been made) They were high up in the sky, when Jason had flown up with his phone, a prototype designed by Leo to be safe to use without attracting monsters' attention, and had secretly, while they were distracted, snapped a picture of them. Frank was in the middle of a laugh, and Hazel was grinning, completely oblivious that Jason was right in front of them.

She smiled, embarrassed, as she remembered that she had screamed when she saw him, startling both the horse and Jason. Oreo had bucked, clearly panicked at the sight of the blond haired boy. She had been thrown off, and her hands had slipped off the reins she was holding, and fallen off the saddle, hurtling towards the ground. She had screamed until she realized she wasn't falling anymore. Frank had flown down on Oreo and had caught her by one hand, still balancing perfectly on Oreo.

Hazel remembered the countless times she had seen Frank training, one of those times with Nico, where they had tried to walk on a thin beam suspended two meters off the ground. It was long and stretched from one end of the room to the other. Frank had been clumsy and had fallen off several times, but Hazel was there when he managed to finally do it, and had seen the look of pure joy and relief. Clearly, the lessons had paid off.

He had pulled her up, and she had kissed him, making him blush bright crimson.

After returning to the ground safely, he had turned into a tiger and pounced on Jason, playfully rolling him in mud until he was yelling for mercy and yelling apologies at Hazel while struggling to stop laughing. Hazel still remembered the way she and Piper had laughed, and how Nico and Will had arrived just in time to see Frank transform back into a human, completely spotless without a speck of mud at all, and helping a completely mud-drenched Jason up, laughing and yelling as Jason grabbed him and pulled him into the mud as well.

Hazel sighed, putting the photo back on the table. She picked up the notebook, wondering if she should read it or not. It seemed extremely familiar. A sudden breeze of wind flew in through an open window, flipping the pages of the notebook before she could do anything.

She gasped in surprise. In the notebook were amazing sketches and drawings of things. Flowers, armor, and… people. Several of the pages were crumpled or ripped, but they were all stuck into the notebook with tape or glue.

As she flipped through the notebook she saw several sketches of her friends, even Will, Nico, and Reyna. They began mediocre, with unrealistic edges and lines, but as she flipped through the pages, she saw the gradual improvement that he had made.

Then with a start, she realized Frank hadn't been the one who drew these sketches. Hazel made a small squeak as she recalled numerous times where she had crumpled or thrown her drawings either on the floor of where she was, or out a window, or even in the trash. She smiled slightly, understanding that Frank must have picked up the papers, and stuck them in the notebook.

She turned a page and opened her mouth in awe at the intricate drawing. Now, this was a drawing that she definitely did not make. She wasn't fond of self-portraits, but this, it was like looking in a mirror. Her curly hair and light freckles stared back at her from the page. The only thing that was colored on the page was her eyes, it looked as if Frank had melted imperial gold onto the page. She looked so poised, so beautiful, almost ethereal really. Then she realized that Frank had asked her for drawing lessons a couple of months back, but she had forgotten about that. The drawing still wasn't flawless, and she looked a little unrealistic, almost cold and a little lifeless, like a statue, but it was still amazing. Just lacking the spark of life in her eyes.

She noticed lines of small words at the bottom of the page.

They read, _Today Hazel told me about diamonds, and how when they're not cut and polished they look nothing like the glittering gems that pop up around her. But she also told me that she'd prefer flowers than diamonds because unlike diamonds, flowers don't need to be cut to show their beauty. Even though most people think children of Pluto are dark, Hazel is the most optimistic, positive person I've met. She isn't a diamond, she's a flower._

Hazel smiled, she hugged the notebook to her chest and thought about flowers, finally falling asleep.

Hazel stood in an open field, filled with purple flowers, swaying in the wind. She looked down and saw she was dressed in a beautiful black and gold dress, with light fabric that twirled all around her in the wind. She was wearing a gold crown, embedded with black gemstones. She took a step forward, trying to see where she was.

With a gasp, she realized there was a girl a couple feet away. She was lying down in the grass, which was all dead around her. Two twin torches lay on the ground next to her, barely burning. Hazel took a step forward towards the girl, gasping in fear as the grass around her burned black, and black diamonds shot up to the surface around her, like tiny glittering marbles. The purple flowers around her wilted, their petals falling to the ground like tears.

With a start, Hazel recognized the girl's dark hair, set in an old-fashioned greek style ponytail. Her sleeveless dark dress, and her beautiful, but deathly pale face sparked something in Hazel's memory. A light aura of green surrounded her, shimmering with the silver runes of magic.

" H-Hecate?"

The girl shot up, grabbing Hazel's arm and twisting it backward with surprising strength for someone who had been lying face down in dirt. Hazel cried out in pain, looking into Hecate's black eyes. She saw realization dawn in her mentor's eyes as she let go, instantly crumpling into a heap on the floor.

" Hazel Levesque. Never thought I would see you again, my child."

Hazel stared at the young girl. " I'm not your daughter." She said, voice shaking.

" Why of course you are. You are an apprentice of Hecate, and very well good enough to be a daughter of mine." She stared up into Hazel's eyes, looking very tired for a twelve-year-old. " How old are you now? Fifteen?"

" Something like that…" Hazel mumbled, trying not to stare at the former goddess.

" I'm still very much a goddess, child. Just because I've assumed this form doesn't mean I'm any less of an immortal being."

" Umm… why are you in that… form." Hazel asked, careful not to trip over any of her words. If Hecate could read her mind she had to be careful with what she said or thought.

Hecate sighed, trying not to slump. " I'm tired child. Something dark is awakening and while Ares and his counterparts, all the counterparts of the gods, have been fighting against it. I've been protecting Olympus with magic, but as you can see, it's paid a price." She gestured at her child self, trying not to glare.

Hazel was about to ask more but then remembered that Ares was seen as Mars in Rome, and then she remembered how Frank was mumbling about his father on Temple Hill. " Well… Wait! Ares? That would mean… wait does that mean that Frank… Did he get hurt because of you?" She asked, her voice getting dangerously loud.

" No. Frank Zhang was not hurt by of the gods, he was hurt by what's killing us.''

Suddenly, Hecate's widened and she fell towards the ground, landing softly on a large bed of leaves. Her eyes flashed green and she coughed, the runes swirling around her turned gray, and crumbled away.

" No!" She screamed, grabbing Hazel and covering her with her black cloak. " You will come across many crossroads Hazel, and whether you choose one or the other, the consequences will be dire. For now, you must fight, get to the other Camp as fast as you can. You have to run!" She gasped as the leaves around her flew up and swallowed her, forcing her underground. A deafening laugh shook the flowers, and all of a sudden the field burst into flames.

With a gasp Hazel woke, still freezing cold. She held her wrist, which burned and had the slender marking of fingers on it. It wasn't a dream… this was something big, bigger than the Great Prophecy, and Hazel knew that she had to do something about it.

She stood up and grabbed her jacket, pulling it on as she headed outside to see Reyna.


End file.
